


Vs. Hero Killer (2)

by Catheeso



Series: BNHA AU [6]
Category: CJMind, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: :), Did I Write Miruko Right Or Am I Dummy, Gen, Gran is replaced by Miruko, Hero Killer part 2!!!, Nomu - Freeform, Nomus fucking suck >:(, One For All, Stain and me both get our shit kicked in, action scenes are over, for now, hero killer - Freeform, is about to be revealed, part 2: electric boogaloo, thank god
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:13:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26691988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Catheeso/pseuds/Catheeso
Summary: The battle against Stain and the aftermath!
Series: BNHA AU [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1883536





	1. Lara’s Fantastic Entrance

**Author's Note:**

> here y’all gremlins go. its done.

They charged at each other. Carter’s blood was pumping and he could feel the adrenaline in his veins as he dodged Stain’s sword. He has no clue as to why neither the pro hero (Native, his mind supplies) and Bre aren’t moving, but it has to be something to do with Stain’s quirk.

Or maybe the fact that they’re both bleeding heavily from their shoulders. Yeah, it might be that. 

He bit his tongue as he scraped his palms dodging another sword because for some reason Stain has _two_. 

Carter knew that logically, he can hear them moving and he can hear Bre shouting nonsense at him, but when he looked over to his fallen friend all he could hear is static buzzing in his ears as he kept dodging and dodging and trying his damndest not to get impaled. 

He glitched away from the blades just in time. The left sword hit the alleyway wall and the stone crumbled, leaving him with a feeling of dread as he imagined what would’ve happened if he hadn’t moved. 

He also knew that he couldn’t keep this up for long. His lungs hurt from not only teleporting him and Miruko here but also running at least a mile trying to figure out where Bre was. Because of that initial teleport, he can feel the prickling sensation of pixels pushing against his fingertips, trying to make them unstable. 

Long story short, he’s effectively screwed if Miruko doesn’t come and help him out. Or really anyone else, considering he sent that distress signal out to all of his contacts. Which isn’t a lot of people but still enough that hopefully _someone_ notices and comes to help along with Miruko.

Stain looked vaguely impressed as he dodged, but Carter could see it wasn’t enough for him to stop entirely. 

Carter used Stain’s face to jump out of the way of one of his swords, earning a muffled shout. Dick. He skidded to a stop, panting, but just barely managed to dodge another swipe. How long until Stain himself tires out?

He kept on his feet. Falling down at any point could leave him open to a variety of side attacks, and he would rather not deal with a blade to the gut. 

Miruko’s training was coming in handy. Sure, it was only three days worth, but it was better than going into this fight with nothing.

Dodge, he thought as one of Stain’s blades came down. Punch, he thought as he threw a right hook into Stain’s side. Defend, he thought as he kicked Stain’s wrist to ward off an incoming swing. 

Survive, he thought to himself as Stain tried over and over again to get a cut on him.

Please get here soon, he prayed to Miruko as a sword smashed onto the ground next to him. 

Dodging the blades was becoming harder. He barely leaped away in time, catching his foot on the ground. He couldn’t afford to stumble, he told himself. Carter teleported out of the way of the left sword just to be faced with the right.

He threw his body to the left, crashing into a dumpster with a groan. As he tried to push himself up, his limbs locked in place.

SHIT-

Looking up, he saw Stain lick more of his sword. His sword that had Carter’s blood on it. That’s his quirk. If he swallows your blood, he paralyzes you. He must’ve cut him earlier when he barely dodged in time to not get cut up like salami.

It felt like he was back at the USJ with limbs fuzzier than his head and blood pooling around his arms. Except everything felt sharp and clear and real, and that might be the worst part. He strained against nothing, his limbs trembling from the effort. Could he teleport like this?

He tried, but the glitches felt like they were forced back down into his body, unable to squirm out. He couldn’t move.

“No,” Carter breathed, watching in silent horror as Stain started to slowly walk over to Bre. He craned his neck back, trying to look over his shoulder. “No- no, no!”

“You have determination, I’ll give you that,” Stain said as he walked past Carter. Bre was still on the ground, shaking. No- not shaking, she was straining against the invisible chains that enwrapped both of them, too. “And your quirk is powerful. You could’ve easily teleported away when you saw me...but you didn’t.”

Stain stopped in front of Bre, who glared up at him with venom. “You’re worth keeping alive, unlike these others.” He was still talking to Carter.

“Stop!” Carter pleaded. Oh god, was he about to watch Bre be murdered by this madman? “Stop! Don’t!”

Stain raised his blade once more, the silver glinting in the moonlight. Before he could do anything, a gust of wind knocked him away. Carter choked on nothing and looked to the front of the alley.

“One after another, so many interruptions,” Stain hissed.

“Carter,” Lara said flatly, “learn to give more context when you send out texts like that. You almost made me late to the party.”

Carter breathed out a strangled laugh, of course, Lara would show up. It’s not like him to send something so cryptic. Thank god he texts Lara so much that she already knows his texting patterns. 

“You didn’t miss a lot,” Carter said. “Just a lot of me kicking Mr. No-Nose in the face.”

Lara’s mouth twitched as she sent another blast of wind at the villain. Stain scowled, jumping up and- wow, he could jump high. 

“Don’t worry, in just a few minutes the pros’ll be here!” Lara shouted, knocking Stain away from her. 

Stain launched himself at her and she took that as an opportunity to switch spots so that she was now in front of them, Stain on the other side, so it was like she was guarding them. 

“You’re not killing anybody today, hero killer,” Lara said coldly as Stain’s eyes flicked back and forth, analyzing the situation. 

“Lara!” He called out, still trying to at the very least sit up. “Don’t let him drink your blood! Think of un-sexy vampires!”

Lara snorted as she put her hands out in front of her, “explains all the knives. So I’ve just gotta keep him away, right? Just for a couple minutes.”

Before he could even blink, a large dagger was thrown at Lara. Lara, thank the heavens, dodged it as it flew past her shoulder. So, he was throwing knives, good to know.

Stain leaped up and swung a sword at Lara. She skidded backward as she blew him away.

“You’ve got some good friends, _Endothermic_ ,” Stain snarled, his aura changing. Instead of seeming as if he’s in control, he seems more desperate now, less in control. He knows he’s outnumbered by a lot and if the pros come like Lara says they are, then he’s screwed. Not to mention that Miruko should still be coming.

Another sword was thrown up in the air to distract Lara. Her head snapped up as a tiny cut dripped from her cheek. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, Lara blasted Stain away. She floated several inches off the ground, huffing slightly. 

He’s always two steps ahead, Carter realized. Just before, he was using Carter’s glitching powers against him and now he’s using clever distractions. He’s no Tomura Shigaraki, they’re dealing with an actual villain.

And Stain has murder in his eyes.


	2. Fury Is Learned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lara has to fight Stain by herself.

Watching Lara have to fight Stain all by herself made Carter feel breathless, watching as she dodged and tucked and rolled away from Stain’s ruthless swinging. 

He was still frozen in place, his arms underneath him like he was trying to get up and got stuck halfway through, his legs limp. Native, on the other side of the clearing, slumped against a wall, following the fight with tired eyes, not saying anything. Bre, laying flat on the stone ground, fury burning like a fire in her eyes.

“Why?” Bre asked, her voice cracking slightly. Whether from rage, fear, or something else - Carter couldn’t tell. “Both of you, just stop it.”

Lara grunted but didn’t respond, too busy trying to not get chopped like a very windy tomato. That was a bad metaphor. He shouldn’t be thinking about shit like that. 

“I’ve inherited my sibling's name!” Bre shouted, her voice suddenly louder than before, but it still wavered. “ _I_ have to do this! He’s _mine_ to-“

“Inherited their name?” Lara cut her off, panting. She slammed a big wall of air at the ground in front of her, forcing Stain to rocket backward. “That’s funny, ‘cause the Endothermic I know never made faces like that. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t want you going around, trying to ‘avenge’ them.”

Carter gritted his teeth and strained. His leg stung over the pumping adrenaline. His breath caught in his throat when he felt his fingers twitch and glitch. Huh?

Dust flooded the area, obstructing his view of the fight. Lara stood on his side, Stain nowhere to be seen. Then, out of the gray cloud, Stain sliced through the displaced air - or more accurately, two blades in. Lara startled, but couldn’t stop the two daggers from stabbing her in her arm. Carter winced with sympathy.

...

Wait.

Winced?

Carter experimentally tried to curl his toes and was surprised to find them cooperate with no hesitation. 

Stain was still talking (he did that a lot, was he Hamlet or something?), his sword raised as he jumped down to Lara. 

Don’t you fucking _dare_.

He glitched and grabbed Stain by his stupid tattered scarf, throwing him into the wall. Stain’s eyes flashed with surprise for a brief moment before he used the wall to propel himself forward and smash into Carter’s side. Carter let out a yelp as he fell onto the ground next to Lara, Stain on the other side of the alleyway once more.

“Carter?” Lara asked in surprise.

“His quirk- it must have a time limit,” Carter panted, wiping away blood from his nose. “M-maybe the more people he uses it on weakens it? Actually, Bre what’s your blood type?”

“I’m type A,” Bre said. 

“I’m B,” Native added helpfully. 

“And I’m O,” Lara finished. “I’m guessing you’re O, too?”

Carter nodded as Stain grinned a smile with all teeth, pleased that they had solved it out so quickly. “Blood type, hah, that’s right.”

“That’s not gonna help us, really,” Carter muttered, standing up. “Maybe if we needed to stall him a little longer?”

“I’m guessing there are people on the way?” Lara asked. “I already know Hawks is gonna be here soon.”

“Miruko’s on her way. We just have to keep him at bay,” Carter said, eyeing the blood that steadily dripped from Lara’s arm. “You’ve got too much blood exposed right now. Plus, you’re better at fighting from a distance. I’ll fight up close and draw his attention away from you.”

“Should we be talking about this?”

Carter snorted sarcastically, “please, he already knows what we’re planning. He’s fought both of us already, remember? We’re not getting the jump on him.”

“Two-on-one, huh? At least you’re not naive,” Stain said. 

Carter held back his witty retort and teleported at him. Stain easily sidestepped, but Lara knocked him back with a blast of wind. They just had to work together. Easy peasy. 

Stain seemed to speed up, looking more frustrated. Carter dodged a swinging sword and narrowly got by a hidden dagger. His best approach was to fight up close like how Miruko taught him, but that was when Stain was at his best. 

Dodge, dodge, dodge. Carter kicked off the ground and used the dark green trashcan to push himself away from Stain. His swords allowed him to stay away from his attacker and if needed, he could use his daggers. Carter had no clue how many of those Stain had, and he wasn’t really looking to find out.

He’s getting faster, Carter thought grimly. He tried to teleport to the side when a sword came slashing at his thigh. _Fuck_. He yelped as Stain licked the sword, causing him to tumble to the side.

“Stop it...I can’t take it,” Bre brokenly whispered. 

“If you wanna stop this, then stand up!” Lara shouted. “Never forget who you want to become!”

Carter gritted his teeth as a stray tear slipped loose, mixing with his sweat. God, that fucking hurt. He barely noticed the initial cut on his leg the first time, but this one hurt a _lot_ more. He resisted the urge to whimper and watched the battle. Lara was losing. He knew that. He felt it deep in his bones as one feels when somethings going wrong. 

Bre was still crying, choking on nothing as she watched the fight. Her eyes were ignited not with rage, but a new emotion Carter couldn’t quite place. Determination? 

Bre’s fingers twitched. Carter smiled to himself.

Stain is so _fucked_.

“Wind,” Stain rasped, darting in close to Lara, his sword right at level with her chest. “Hasn’t anyone ever told you that relying too heavily on your quirk makes you sloppy?”

Stain was so focused on trying to get a hit in on Lara, he didn’t notice Bre had gotten up until it was too late. She darted under his raised arm and kicked him square in the side. She slammed a piece of her hair into his arm, cementing it in place. 

“Bre!” Carter shouted. 

“It wore off,” Lara said. “This guy’s quirk isn’t so great after all.”

“This had nothing to do with either of you, I’m so sorry,” Bre said.

Carter groaned, “not this again.”

“Shut up, CJ,” Bre retorted. “That’s why I swear I won’t let you two lose any more blood here.”

Stain’s sword clattered to the ground a little ways away. 

“It’s no use pretending,” Stain snarled. “A person’s true nature is not so easily changed. You’re a fake who prioritized his own selfish desires! A cancer on this society warped by ‘heroes’. Someone needs to correct the system.”

“Oh my god, shut the fuck up,” Carter shouted. “Everything you say is bullshit. It isn’t fucking 2011, get with the times old man!”

“He’s right, though,” Bre said softly. “I have no right to call myself a hero. Still, I won’t let him break me.”

Bre took a shaking step forward, looking Stain dead in the eyes. “Because if I break, then Endothermic’s really dead.”

“You’re hopeless,” Stain sneered. He made a move to dart forward but was blasted back by a wave of wind from Lara.

“Idiot! The hero killer’s after me and the girl with the green hair!” Native yelled. “Forget fighting back! Just get out of here!”

“I don’t think he’ll let us,” Lara snipped back, panting. “He went through a clear change a minute ago. He’s all fired up, too.”

‘He’s desperate to defeat us’ went unspoken. He knows that as soon as the pros come, he’s screwed over. His quirk, it paralyzes people. Sure, he’s a good fighter, but probably not for a long time. He wants to finish this quickly. But they won’t let him. 

_I’m not dying today_ , Carter thought. His leg twinged painfully and he could feel the pixels boiling uncomfortably under his skin. He could not become unstable, not right now. 

“Lara!” Bre called. “Can you use your wind to blow my hair?”

“Maybe!” Lara called back. “Depends on where you want me to and how fast!”

Stain threw a throwing knife at Lara. “Stop interfering!”

Lara sucked in a sharp breath, trying to pull her extended arm away. Bre darted in front of Lara, the dagger impeding itself into her arm. Bre grunted.

“You stay down, too.” Stain threw a much larger knife - more of a sword - down and it pinned Bre down to the ground. Bre cried out, twitching slightly. 

“Bre!” Lara shouted in alarm.

“Just do it, quickly!” Bre exclaimed. 

Lara created a small whirlwind in her hands. Carter slowly pushed himself up, using the wall to steady himself. His leg ached horribly, blood dripping steadily. He just needed to glitch once. Just once.

He took a steadying breath, focusing on the timing. Just wait for Stain to jump up. Just wait for him to jump and-

“There!” Lara said. She must be talking to Bre. But why? Carter shook his head. This was his chance. An idea sprung in his head and he almost grinned.

He closed his eyes and focused on Stain. Everything he knew about Stain, including what he looked like. This was a long shot, but it was worth it.

He glitched up at the same time he saw Bre use Lara’s tiny whirlwind to boost herself, grabbing a piece of her hair. A cluster of pixels boiled in his hands. The same thing he used against the monster from the USJ. The same amount of power. 

He used it right on Stain’s face.


	3. Adrenaline Crashing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fight with Stain is over.

Stain landed roughly on the dumpsters with a loud _clang_ , furthered knocked out by Lara’s burst of wind that had hit him when he tried to struggle against Bre’s cement. 

“Is- is he dead?” Carter asked. “He looks pretty dead.”

Bre walked over and poked him like she was poking a random dead animal. Lara made a sound of protest but didn’t intervene. Stain didn’t stir.

“Yep, dead,” Bre reported. Carter walked over and kicked him in the knee. 

“Stop, both of you,” Lara groaned. “He’s not dead, he’s just unconscious. Now, help me tie him up.”

“With what? Garbage?” Bre asked, putting a hand over her injured arm. 

“Look around the dumpsters for rope. We’re in a back alleyway, there’s gonna be some kind of rope somewhere.” Lara rolled her eyes.

“We should take his weapons. Can I keep one of his daggers? They’re very shiny,” Carter said.

A rustle made them look to the side. Native was there, standing with rope in his hands. “Rope likes this?” He asked.

“Yeah, thanks,” Lara replied, starting to take Stain’s weapons off of him. 

Carter grimaced as he sat down, breathing heavily. His legs shook with the effort. He leaned against one of the dark green dumpsters, closing his eyes as he heard Lara and Bre take the hero killer’s weapons off of him, Native probably still lingering off to the side. 

He heard more rustling before somebody poked him on the head. He grunted and lazily swatted the hand away. 

“CJ,” Bre whined. “We finished tying up Mr. Stabby, c’mon, let’s go.”

“I don’t think- I don’t think I can walk,” Carter sighed, his leg still throbbing and his feet glitching out. The adrenaline had started to falter and had now completely crashed, leaving him shaky and tired. 

“I can carry you,” Native offered. Carter cracked his eyes open. Native’s only injury was his shoulder wound, but...

“Your shoulder is pretty fucked up, I can walk,” Carter said, attempting to push himself up. He groaned as his leg buckled under him. “Ne-never mind.”

Native took that as a sign to scoop him up on his back. Carter groaned again as his legs glitched. He _hated_ it when his feet were unstable. His arms hung limply over Native’s shoulders. 

“Of course we’d find rope in a trash-filled alleyway,” Lara said even though she was the one who suggested it. Not even suggested, she had practically ordered them to search. 

“I can drag him,” Bre offered, idly kicking Stain again. 

“Your arms are still bleeding,” Lara deadpanned. 

“Sorry, I’m supposed to be a pro, but all I did was get in the way,” Native apologized, shifting Carter higher up onto his back. 

“It’s fine,” Carter mumbled. “Stain’s ideals were bullshit but he has a good quirk. There’s not much you could’ve done.”

“Even in a three-on-one fight, we just barely won because he screwed up. He probably got so mad that he forgot about the effect wearing off Carter. And with Bre’s cement, he couldn’t physically react in time to Carter’s movements,” Lara pointed out. 

“Virus!” A voice shouted. Carter blinked and looked up. Miruko landed roughly in front of them, looking a little worse for wear, but still kicking. “What the fuck?!”

Carter blinked again. “Miruko-sensei. You’re a little late.”

Miruko stared at him, then at Native, then at the tied-up Stain, then back at him. 

“I told you not to do one thing,” she said. “What was that?”

“To not fight Stain,” he muttered. 

“And what did you do?”

“I fought Stain.”

“I have half a mind to hit you right now,” she said, but she didn’t sound angry. In fact, she sounded kind of proud of him. He almost laughed. 

A bunch of people followed afterward, including Hawks. Minor heroes, probably. Maybe sidekicks? Rumor was that Endeavor was in Hosu. Huh, that means Charlie might be here in Hosu. That means he also missed out on all the fun. He takes that back, this wasn’t very fun. 

He pressed his face into Native’s shoulder as his legs glitched. No, not fun at all. 

“Is that the hero killer?!” A woman asked. Duh. Obviously. 

“Endeavor’s here?” Lara asked. “Let me guess, he’s off fighting those Nomus?”

“Wait, there’s Nomus here?” Carter asked. He didn’t know that. There’s more Nomus that exist? It’s official, this is all bullshit. He hates everything. He’s just gonna die right here out of spite. He already dealt with a stupid Nomu at the USJ. “Why does the world hate me.”

“Because you suck ass,” Bre said. “Also, to both of you, I’m sorry. I was blinded by unreasonable rage. I shouldn’t have put you guys in danger like that.”

“I wouldn’t call it unreasonable,” Lara shrugged. “Your sibling got injured. Just, next time when something bad happens, don’t go and try to get murdered, alright?”

Native loosened his grip on Carter’s legs and carefully shuffled him onto the ground. Miruko took him and threw his arm over her shoulder so she could support him. It wasn’t that hard considering they were almost the same hight. 

“You guys hear that?” Hawks asked, looking around. His wings fluffed up in alarm and his voice rose to a shout. “Get down!”

A shadow fell across the pavement and stray blood splattered. Carter looked up just in time to have a flashback to the USJ before talons sunk into his side.

_Oh, shit._

Carter stared blankly, numbly, at the concrete as got farther away. 

“Carter!” Bre screamed. She used his real name? Wow, she must be scared. Why is she scared? Is there something wrong? His brain short-circuited as he tried to figure out what just happened.

Talons gripped his side tighter. Talons? 

TALONS.

Carter screamed, writhing in the Nomu’s grip. No no no-!

Oh god, it hurt. How had he not noticed this? Tears streamed down his face as he clawed at the feet holding his side, trembling. Let. Me. Go! He can’t glitch out oh god he’s gonna be carried off and he’s gonna die. He doesn’t wanna die! 

“ _Help_!” He shrieked. He doesn’t wanna die, he doesn’t wanna die, he doesn’t-

The Nomu went still, mid-flap, and began to plummet. He shrieked again, struggling to get out of its grip. Someone was talking. He could hear somebody’s voice and his body vaguely registered it as _danger danger, get away-_ , but all he could feel was relief because someone was saving him! 

Blood splashed across his face as almost gentle arms grabbed him and set him onto the ground. His body tensed as he realized who had grabbed him.

Carter attempted to get up because he was not about to be this guy’s damsel in distress, but was pushed down not so gently by Stain. He shivered as Stain kept his hand on his back. 

“Why’re are you all bunched up together?!” A voice shouted. Stain stiffened, anger radiating off him at the voice. Carter didn’t know if he felt relief or dread. “One of them should’ve headed your way!”

The heroes exchanged a few words and he heard Endeavor shout something about the hero killer, but all Carter could think about was how he was gonna get away from this. 

“Get off of me,” Carter coughed, feeling himself shake. “Get- get off of me!”

Stain used his body to push himself up. He heard Hawks shout at Endeavor to wait before Carter looked up and froze.

A chill set through the air. 

“You fake...” Stain said. “If I don’t fix it, if someone isn’t stained with blood, if I don’t reclaim my hero status...!” 

Stain took a step forwards, drooling at the mouth. Carter watched stock-still, frozen in place, heart hammering.

“Come! Just try me, you fakes!” Stain snarled. He was smiling. “The only one allowed to kill me is All Might, a true hero!”

Stain then stopped.

Just...stopped.

Dread hung in the air like it was a tangible thing. But...Stain wasn’t moving. 

“This guy,” Endeavor said, sounding surprisingly mellow. He seemed shocked. “He’s- he’s out cold.”

Carter rested his forehead on the cold concrete. It’s over. It’s finally over. His leg hurt. His feet hurt. His side hurt. His head throbbed in tune with his heartbeat. 

Carter laid right there and sobbed.


	4. Consequences, Woof

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsuragamae’s one of the funniest characters I’ve ever had the pleasure of writing.

“I could’ve died,” Carter said hollowly. He was laying on the bed, bandages wrapped around his legs and his side. They were itchy. He still didn’t like bandages. It seems life takes every opportunity to somehow give him an injury the requires itchy bandages. 

“Correction: you two could’ve died,” Lara said, sitting on the bed next to him. She only had a couple of bandages wrapped around her arm where she took a couple of knives during the fight. “I totally saved your asses.”

“CJ was more of a damsel in distress this time around,” Bre smirked. Carter frowned, remembering his own thought process when Stain had ‘saved’ him. 

Stain had been transferred to a villain hospital. It was later revealed that he had punctured a lung from a broken rib. His thought process was mostly just wondering who broke Stain’s ribs. Probably him. 

“He could’ve easily killed me. Like, five times. But he didn’t,” Carter said. 

“He didn’t want to kill you,” Bre replied quietly, looking out one of the windows. “He said it himself. He thinks you’re a true hero.”

“Carter, a true hero? Are we talking about the same person?” Lara asked jokingly, trying to lighten the mood. 

Bre snorted, “yeah, I-“

The door opened, cutting Bre off. In the doorway stood Miruko, Hawks, Manuel, and a person with a dog head. Tsuragamae, the chief of police in Hosu, if he remembered correctly. 

“Oh, would you look at that, the squirts are awake,” Miruko said with a grin. “Don’t think you’re off the hook, kid. You’ve just go a visitor for now. This is Mr. Kenji Tsuragamae, Hosu’s chief of police.”

“Please stay seated, woof.”

Carter.

Was.

_Speechless_. 

Fucking _WOOF?_

He really, really, didn’t wanna laugh in the face of Hosu’s chief of police so he wisely bit his tongue, sucking in a sharp breath in order to contain himself. Lara and Bre were doing the exact same and even Hawks seemed amused.

“So you’re the U.A. students who put a stop to the hero killer, woof. As for the hero killer, he’s currently in treatment for his broken bones and a number of other serious injuries, woof.”

Carter winced at that, remembering how Stain had fallen onto the dumpsters quite loudly and ungracefully. The man who later saved his life. Well, he wouldn’t have needed saving if it wasn’t for him, so. 

“At the dawn of this extra-ordinary era, the police moved to prioritize leadership and to maintain the status quo, so they decided to not use quirks as weapons. The profession of ‘hero’ rose as one that would fill that void, woof.

“Authorizing the use of such might, of these powers that could so easily kill, was a heavily criticized decision at first, but it would garner public support. All because your predecessors acted morally and complied with the laws, woof.

“But without permission, those who inflicted harm without explicit instruction from the police and powers that be, _even if_ they were to face someone like the hero killer, such action would represent a stunning breach of the law, woof.”

“I was authorized, though,” Carter said softly, raising a hand like he was in class.

All eyes turned to him and he shrunk back a little. “What was that?” Tsuragamae asked, not impolitely.

“Miruko-sensei, she authorized me for combat,” Carter responded, stronger.

“So did Hawks,” Lara added. “He said that I could fight.”

“It’s true,” Miruko said. “Although I told him that he shouldn’t fight the hero killer, I did authorize any quirk usage for combat. He was well within the law to fight the hero killer. Doesn’t mean I’m happy about it.”

“Lara was authorized to use her quirk as well,” Hawks nodded.

“Was Breanne Clements authorized?” Tsuragamae asked Manual. Manual hesitated for a second but shook his head.

“No, no she wasn’t.”

Bre visually slumped, pulling at the bandages covering her arms.

“You don’t have to say it was Bre who fought him,” Carter said slowly. “There weren’t any permanent injuries from her quirk, you could just say that it was just me and Lara. After all, that’s kind of what happened, right?”

Tsuragamae studied the three of them for a minute. Carter swallowed but held his gaze.

“The story we were gonna go with was that Hawks and I swooped in and saved the day,” Miruko admitted, “but I like your idea, squirt!” She smacked him playfully over the head and he gave a small laugh. 

“I’ll have to discuss this,” Tsuragamae frowned. It was hard to tell that he was frowning, but it looked pretty close. “But you’ll know my answer by six tonight.”

“That’s vague, but okay,” Bre sighed, silently accepting Manual’s less playful hit to the head. Hawks grinned and shot Lara finger guns which she returned with an unimpressed expression. 

They chatted for a little longer before the heroes eventually left the room, leaving the three students alone. Carter flopped onto his bed and sighed.

“We did something amazing, didn’t we?” He asked, unable to hide his small smile.

“We took down the fuckin’ _hero killer_ ,” Bre laughed. “Yeah, we did something amazing!”

“I’m surprised I was the only one to come, to be honest,” Lara said. “I mean, wasn’t both Charlie and Kacey in the city, too?”

“Firstly, I don’t have Charlie’s number. Secondly, Kacey was in the city? Good for them. Hope they didn’t have as much excitement as we did.”

The three of them laughed together. In a couple hours, they’ll get to see whether they become the hero students who took the hero killer down or the hero students who needed to be saved.

Carter closed his eyes. It was over.


	5. Publicity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath.

With the news that two U.A. students managed to take down the hero killer all by themselves was aired across pretty much every station across the country, Carter’s phone, predictably, blew up. 

The first person to talk to him that wasn’t somebody in the hospital with him or a hero, was his mom. She had rushed him and practically engulfed him in a hug. He had spluttered, his arms pinned to his sides, trying to shift into a more comfortable position. She then shook him vigorously, yelling at him for even thinking about trying to fight Stain.

Bre laughed at his misery and his mom turned around and yelled at _her_. It was a very surreal experience. 

The second person to talk to him was Kali who called him and proceeded to laugh at him over the phone. Carter honestly didn’t know what he expected.

The next was Destiny who called him and cried out of worry eventually congratulating him and saying that she knew he was good. Kimi texted him ‘nice job’ and left it at that. 

Charlie and Kacey visited the three of them in the hospital and apologized profusely to him for not realizing what his message meant. He had laughed it off, saying it was fine. Can’t have too many people taking the glory, right? Lara had rolled her eyes. 

Aizawa visited when the three of them were getting ready to leave, dressed in regular clothes. He stared at them for a long time before shaking his head in defeat.

“Problem child,” he said to Carter, “be more specific in your texts.”

“Why am I problem child?” Carter protested. “That’s not fair!”

“Life isn’t fair,” Aizawa replied, ignoring Bre’s snickering. Carter had gaped like a fish, trying to form a response.

The return to school was eventful. If he thought getting recognized after the Sports Festival was weird, he had another thing coming. Even walking home was nearly impossible when people would stop him on the street and ask if he really took down the hero killer.

It was made worse when he had his U.A. uniform on and Miruko personally walking him to school. He had whined and said that she didn’t need to, but she had smirked and told him that she was worried he was gonna fight _another_ villain on his way. He had settled for glaring at her half-heartedly the entire time. 

Miruko admitted that she regretted she couldn’t have taught him more over the course of his internship, but there wasn’t much she could _really_ do. He had reassured her and said she taught him plenty, which she had. He probably would’ve lost against Stain if it wasn’t for her. Plus, there wasn’t much she could’ve done for his quirk.

When he got to the classroom, past the obnoxious crowds of reporters, he naturally gravitated to the back of the room where Lara sat, Bre already standing there and leaning against a desk. 

The class was talking about their internships and how fun it was. A couple kids didn’t like their internships, like Liam who seemed personally scarred by his experience with Best Jeanist, but others were thriving. 

“Gunhead was amazing,” Connor said. “I wouldn’t mind being his sidekick!”

“I learned a lot from Selkie,” Ethan nodded. 

“Gang Orca was interesting,” Carmen said, kicking her legs. “It was an, uh, _experience_.”

“Wanna talk about experiences? I’d say the three of them had both the worst and the best,” Charlie pointed out, actually pointing to the three of them talking quietly.

“I had heard about the hero killer via the news,” Peter frowned. “I can’t believe you guys fought him and actually won!”

Carter shrugged uncomfortably. “It’s not like we wanted to fight him.”

“I did,” Bre said.

“ _We_ didn’t wanna fight him,” Lara corrected. “And really, Bre, you shouldn’t tell people that.”

“I’m not the one who almost became Nomu dinner,” Bre smirked, poking him in the side. He scowled and smacked her hand, crossing his arms. 

“He’s scary,” Lily mumbled. “People think he was working with the League of Villains.”

Carter bit his lip and involuntarily tensed up. The police had practically confirmed it, not to mention the tan Nomu. But why did Stain save him?

“Hold on. Sure, he’s scary, but did you watch that video, Lily? You can really see his tenacity. His one-track mind. Kind of cool, don’t you think?” Connor asked.

“Connor,” Amelia said sharply. She had been oddly quiet for a while. Carter honestly forgot she was in the room.

“Huh? Oh, s-sorry Bre!” Connor startled, waving his arms.

“It’s fine,” Bre replied. “He’s certainly a man of conviction. Some people can admire that, I guess. But his convictions had led him down a bloody path. I admire strong motives, but not if they require you to hurt innocent people in the process.”

“Who knew Bre could be so smart?” Kali snarked, sitting down in her seat. “Get in your seats, losers. Class is about to start.”

They ended up heading outside and in front of a big metal wall, Carter watched All Might walk forward with a frown. Where were they?

“I am here!” All Might boomed. “And the reason for that is your basic hero training! It’s been a while, boys and girls! How is everyone?”

“I’m still dead inside, thanks for asking,” Kali deadpanned.

“That entrance was lame. You run out of flashy entrances?” Kimi complained. 

All Might sputtered but continued on. “As an immediate follow-up to your internships, today’s activity is a playful one! A rescue-training race!”

“Shouldn’t rescue-training be conducted at USJ?” Ava asked. The whole class shivered at the mention of the USJ.

“That place is for _disaster_ rescues in particular. But what did I say? That’s right, a race. This is Field Gamma! It’s a dense spread of factories that wind together to create an intricate network of maze-like alleys! You’ll split into six teams of three, since there’s eighteen of you, with each team going one at a time! I’ll send up a distress signal from somewhere inside, but you won’t know where! You will start at the border, it’s a race to see who can reach and rescue me first!”

“Naturally, keep the property damage to a minimum,” All Might added.

“Stop pointing at me,” Kali grumbled. 

Group one was him, Owen, and Lily. The fact that they won’t know where exactly All Might’s sent out the distress signal is probably to stop him from teleporting straight to the source and winning immediately, to even out the playing field.

He took position on the platform, surveying the mass of steel pipes that lined the entire area. Lily will have the biggest disadvantage, her quirk not allowing her to move around easily. Owen should be fine. But that didn’t really matter considering he had a hidden trick up his sleeve.

He closed his eyes and thought of everything he knew about All Might, just like he did with Stain. Before, he thought he could only teleport to a place. But, with the cost of getting slightly more unstable than usual, he _could_ teleport to a person. Thank you life-threatening experience, always teaching him so much.

The buzzer rang loud and clear, with an added start, and Carter took a deep breath.

All Might. The injury. His iconic form. His weakened form. His personality, his name.

Toshinori Yagi.

With a loud crackle of static and the feeling that he was gonna throw up, Carter stumbled as he glitched right in front of All Might, almost falling to his knees. All Might visibly startled as Carter looked up and smiled.

“Surprised?”

All Might gave a hearty laugh, “good job, young Carter!”

Carter fought the urge to beam. His optimism was almost infectious. Heavy emphasis on almost. He still hasn’t forgotten how All Might lied to him at the Sports Festival.

All Might patted him on the shoulder. Carter frowned as his fingers twitched. What was the number one hero hiding that could be so dangerous? 

“I need to talk to you after class,” All Might whispered, almost too quietly for Carter to hear. 

Was he about to find out?


End file.
